Foreknowledge of WTC 7's Collapse

Of the two principal theories of WTC 7's collapse --
one being global structural failure
due to prior debris impact and ongoing fire damage,
and the other being controlled demolition --
the second is favored by foreknowledge of the collapse.
This is particularly true given the lack of precedent
of total collapses of steel framed structures during fires.
So unprecedented was the collapse of Building 7 that
the government has yet to explain it, in 2007.

That would probably be lost on most responders on the site,
who would have the fresh memories of the Twin Towers' explosions
to help them accept the notion that the total of collapse
of smoking skyscrapers is a natural and even predictable occurrence.

Witness reports
show that officials who controlled the streets around WTC 7
evacuated the area in the hour before the 5:20 PM collapse,
and that various officials forwarded verbal warnings
conveying certainty that the collapse would occur.
Network
television broadcasts
contain announcements of the collapse
at least 23 minutes before the event.

Witness Accounts of Foreknowledge

This overview of
witness accounts
shows that the evacuation of the area surrounding WTC 7
started sometime around 4 PM, and was completed only a few
minutes before the 5:20 collapse.
The warnings of the collapse, which are recalled in dozens
of accounts by emergency responders,
show a striking consistency of conviction that the collapse would occur.

Premature Announcements on Television Broadcasts

The BBC announces the collapse of WTC 7
as the facade stands behind correspondent Jane Standley.

At least two television networks made premature announcements
of the collapse of WTC 7.
The BBC unequivocally announced
the collapse about 23 minutes before the fact,
and even featured a New York correspondent speaking
of the collapse in past tense
with the still-erect skyscraper standing behind her.

CNN anchor Aaron Brown announced that the building
"has either collapsed or is collapsing" about an hour before the event.
Unlike the BBC correspondent,
Brown seemed to be able to read the skyline and see that Building 7
was still standing -- perhaps accounting for the muddled announcement.

Vast Archive of Footage

The premature announcements of the collapse of WTC by television networks
went unnoticed until researchers discovered a vast archive of
television broadcast footage from the day of the attack.
On February 22, 2007, a post on
911Blogger.com
listed the URLs on
Archive.org
of 417 mpeg recordings
capturing about 60 hours broadcast coverage
starting on the morning of 9/11/01
from each of six different television stations.
Each of the high-quality recordings covering about 41 minutes of broadcast.

The coverage included the following television stations and time spans:

TV station

start time

end time

NBC4 Washington

9/11 08:31

9/13 20:23

ABC7 Washington

9/11 08:31

9/13 22:29

BBC

9/11 09:16

9/13 20:19

FOX5 Washington

9/11 08:31

9/13 20:23

CNN

9/11 08:48

9/13 20:33

CBS9 Washington

9/11 08:31

9/13 20:23

Unfortunately, Archive.org
made the footage archive inaccessible to the public
shortly after the BBC foreknowledge story was publicized.